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Adventures of an aide-de-camp, or A campaign in Calabria
Adventures of an aidedecamp or A campaign in Calabria Author:James Grant Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III. A NARROW ESCAPE. It was a clear and beautiful morning when I issued forth on my return to the cardinal's villa. As I passed a cantina by the r... more »oadside, under a trellis in front of it, I encountered two personages whom I had no wish to meet on that side of Massena's lines: the surly Captain Pepe, who treated me so insultingly at Crotona, and Truffi the hunchback, whom I recognised notwithstanding his disguise—a white Cistertian frock and shovel hat. Draughts, dominoes, and wine-horns were before them ; and they had apparently passed the night at the table over which they leaned, sleeping away the fumes of their potations. As I passed, an unlucky house dog leaped forth from his barrel, yelling and shaking hischain. The captain, yet half intoxicated, started up and felt for his sword, and I saw a bastia knife gleaming in the long lean fingers of the cripple. " Corpo !" said he, " 'tis only a priest." " Hola! call you that fellow a priest ? " replied Pepe, balancing himself with difficulty : but, drunk as he was, he had the eyes of a lynx, and knew me in a moment. " Mille baionettes! an English spy. Ah, Monsieur Aide-de-camp!—villain! Hola, the quarter guard! Hola, the provost, and the noose from the nearest tree : a la lanterne ! " He staggered towards me with his drawn sabre, and I supposing the cantina was full of soldiers, became alarmed, as the hideous Truffi yelled and whooped till the welkin rang. My death was certain if captured: not even York could have saved it, or those important despatches with which the general entrusted me. But I thought less of them than of Bianca, life, liberty, and honour. I easily wrenched Pepe's sabre from him, and knocked him down with my clenched hand: his head clattered on the hard dusty road, and he lay motionless. Tru...« less